High pressure gas container with an auxiliary valve and process for filling it

ABSTRACT

A high pressure gas container with a container body for storing gas and at least one first valve for discharging the stored gas, further includes an auxiliary valve for introducing the gas into the container body and for temporarily closing the container body until the container body is sealed permanently, wherein the first valve and the auxiliary valve are in fluid connection with the container body. A process for filling a high pressure gas container having a container body for storing gas, at least one first valve for discharging the stored gas and an auxiliary valve wherein the first valve and the auxiliary valve are in fluid connection with the container body, includes the following steps: The gas is introduced into the container body through the auxiliary valve, the auxiliary valve is at least temporarily closed, the auxiliary valve is sealed permanently.

The invention concerns a high pressure gas container comprising acontainer body for storing gas and a process for filling a high pressuregas container having a container body for storing gas and at least onefirst valve for discharging the stored gas.

For cold filling pressure containers, according to DE 101 07 895 afilling gas is cooled before its introduction into the pressurecontainer, wherein on completion of the filling process the pressurecontainer is sealed in a pressure-tight manner. As the gas warms up thepressure in the pressure container rises rapidly.

According to DE 198 17 324 a fuel gas is filled into a light weight tankmade with a liner of chrome nickel steel inside of a fibre reinforcedshell, wherein the fuel is introduced in deep cooled liquid form and isstored at a pressure above 300 bar.

According to WO 2005/043033 a pressure vessel, for example of an airbagsystem, is filled with a gas or a gas mixture at a temperature which ishigher than the boiling point thereof, closing the cold vessel and apressure is produced in the filled and closed vessel by heating it toambient temperatures.

According to WO 2005/059431 a pressure container is filled with a gasmixture, wherein a gas mixture is introduced in its gaseous state or inits liquefied state or at least one gas component of a gas mixture isintroduced in its gaseous state or in its liquefied state in a cooledpressure gas container.

U.S. Pat. No. 1,414,359 discloses a process for filling compressed gascontainers, wherein a given quantity of liquefied gas is placed in avessel of low specific heat capacity that is suspended within thecontainer, the container is closed, and the walls of the container aremaintained at a temperature above 0° C. until the enclosed substance hasbeen converted into gaseous form.

DE 101 19 115 discloses a pressure container particularly suited forfilling with low boiling permanent gases or gas mixtures at lowtemperatures which is provided on its inner surface with a materialhaving a low heat conducting coefficient.

EP 0 033 386 discloses a process for transporting and storing permanentgases, in particular hydrogen, under pressure in pressure containers,wherein the gases are cooled to low temperatures above their boilingpoint and are transported and stored in isolated pressure containers.

It is known, that airbags in vehicles are increasingly using new typesof gas generators, which in the event of an accident inflate the airbagwithin a few milliseconds. High pressure gas storage systems are used asgas generators.

Three different types of gas generators are currently in use:

-   -   Chemical generators which generate gas by reaction of a chemical        solid with ambient air;    -   Hybrid generators which use both a fuel solid and gas that is        stored in a pressurized high pressure gas container;    -   Cold gas generators that store gas in pressurized gas containers        at high pressures up to 700 bar at 15° C.

The gas generators, which are filled with various gases at ambienttemperatures, provide for considerable technical problems, both in termsof their production and their filling with pressures of up to 700 bar orabove. The heat of compression in particular during a rapid fillingleads to undefined temperature conditions which usually considerablyaffect the metering precision with which the amount of gas is introducedinto the gas containers. To meet a high metering standard is importantwith respect to the subsequent inflation characteristics of the airbag.Very expensive and complex piston or diaphragm compressors are requiredto generate the very high pressures. This entails high investment andhigh maintenance costs. In addition, a correspondingly complex andexpensive downstream gas supply is required for these pressures.

The known cold filling techniques avoid the problem originating from thefilling of high pressures, however, these techniques usually work atextremely low temperatures which makes multiple adaptations ofconventional process steps, such as the sealing of the gas container, tothe low temperature conditions necessary, which is not desirable withrespect investment and maintenance costs.

It is desirable that the density of the gas stored in a gas container isas high as possible, wherein the filling of the gas container should bereliable, reproducible, save and economical. The amount of gas filledinto the container should be precisely metered and the throughput of gasfilling facility should be as high as possible.

With respect to high temperature gas filling processes, that use highpressures above 300 bar, the known solutions to tightly connect a gasfilling device with the gas container are challenging. The highpressures put high demands on safety and rigid connections and thickwalled pipes are required to cope with the high pressure conditions.

With respect to the low temperature gas filling, the high pressureinduced mechanical instabilities are less prominent, yet problems ofthermal insulation, thermal tension and thermal expansion due to strongtemperature gradients appear. In particular, the positioning of the gascontainers at the gas supply station is not easy as the thermalcontraction respectively expansion makes fine control of the spatialpositioning system difficult.

Filling processes at room temperature operate at pressures above 300 barand closing the filled pressurized gas containers is a difficult task.Usually complex high pressure vessels are used. The gas containers arebrought into the high pressure vessel and are filled and closed under ahigh pressure. Usually the container comprises a membrane which iswelded to the container. The closing process is technically complex andeconomically inefficient as the pressure vessel needs to be pressurizedand depressurized for each loading cycle.

Gas filling at cold temperatures does not entail the problem of thepressure induced mechanical instabilities but needs to be performed atvery low temperatures of usually below 100° K. Due to the lowtemperature and temperature gradients thermal induced stress and thermalexpansion respectively contraction requires complex adaptation of theclosing mechanism. It should be noted that in particular for airbagsystems precise control of the amount of gas to be filled and stored inthe gas container is indispensable for a reliable functioning of theairbag system.

An object of the present invention is to provide for a high pressurecontainer with a container body for storing gas and a process forfilling a high pressure gas container having a container body forstoring gas, that allow for efficient, reproducible, reliable andeconomical filling of pressure gas containers.

This and other problems are solved according to the invention by a highpressure gas container and the process for filling a high pressure gascontainer as defined in the claims below. Further advantageousembodiments and developments, which can be employed individually or inany suitable combination, are also provided.

According to the invention the high pressure gas container with acontainer body for storing gas and with at least one first valve fordischarging the stored gas is characterized by further comprising anauxiliary valve for introducing the gas into the container body and fortemporarily closing the container body until the container body issealed permanently, wherein the first valve and the auxiliary valve arein fluid connection with the container body.

The first valve is used for discharging the stored gas, when thecontainer body is sealed permanently. For example the first valve may beat a membrane valve that is opened when the stored gas is needed, e.g.during an accident which makes the operation of the airbag systemnecessary. In connection with airbag systems the first valve may be amembrane valve that bursts when the stored gas is needed for inflatingan airbag.

The first valve is gas tight on a permanent time basis, e.g. for over 15years. Usually the first valve is closed by welding.

The auxiliary valve also helps to facilitate the supplying respectivelyintroducing of gas into the container body. For instance after supplyinga first gas or after introducing a second gas, the container body istemporarily closed. and transported to a closing unit which closes thecontainer body permanently.

Furthermore the auxiliary valve may, if connected in a fluid seriesconnection with the first valve at the gas container, be used forcontrolling the gas flow during an discharge operation. For exampleduring an accident the amount of gas per unit time that is used forinflating an airbag may be suitably and precisely controlled.

The auxiliary valve may help to avoid gas leakage during the transportof the gas container for the time after the completion of the fillingstep until the gas container is permanently sealed.

The high pressure gas container may withstand pressures above 300 bar,for example up to 1300 bar, in particular in between 500 bar to 800 bar.

The gas to be introduced into the container may be a pure gas or amixture of gases and may be an inert gas such as an noble gas inapplications such as airbag systems. The gas may also be a fuel gas suchas hydrogen in connection with fuel cell systems. The gas container maybe filled with a cryogenically solidified or a cryogenically liquefiedgas and high pressure may be obtained by closing the gas containershortly after its filling and letting the gas container warm up to roomtemperature.

The first valve and the auxiliary valve may be connected to thecontainer body in fluid series connection, wherein the auxiliary valvemay be in the fluid series connection between the first valve and thecontainer body.

The first valve and the auxiliary valve may be connected to thecontainer body with separate fluid connection lines. The first valve maybe provided at the container body prior to its filling with gas. In thiscase the gas is to be introduced through the auxiliary valve into thecontainer body.

The first valve may be non-reversibly openable. The auxiliary valve maybe reversibly openable and closable.

In order to close the gas container permanently a sealing portion isprovided at the auxiliary valve for permanently closing the auxiliaryvalve. The sealing portion may be provided in the fluid connectionbetween the auxiliary valve and the container body, or, the auxiliaryvalve may be provided in the fluid interconnection between the sealingportion and the container body.

By closing the auxiliary valve the gas container may be sealedpermanently with the sealing machine operating at ambient pressure andat ambient temperature.

Complex pressure vessels or specific adaptations to extremely lowtemperatures are not required anymore. Advantageously conventionalsealing techniques such as welding may be used for closing the gascontainer permanently.

The auxiliary valve may be one of the following valves: a ball cock, aball valve, a bibcock, a butterfly valve, a gate valve, a globe valve, acheck valve, a rotary valve, a piston valve etc.

The auxiliary valve may be designed to be comparatively inexpensive asits purpose is solely for temporarily closing the container body.Usually it suffices when the auxiliary valve is able to retain thecontent of the gas container sufficiently constant for several minutesas usually the gas container may be permanently sealed shortly after itsfilling.

The first valve may be a membrane valve. The high pressure gas containermay be particularly intended for use in connection with an airbagsystem.

It should be noted that the high pressure gas container may be used fora fuel cell. In this case the gas container stores a fuel gas such ashydrogen.

According to the invention the process for filling a high pressure gascontainer having a container body for storing gas, at least one firstvalve for discharging the stored gas and an auxiliary valve, wherein thefirst valve and the auxiliary valve are in fluid connection with thecontainer body, comprises the following steps: The gas is introducedinto the container body through the auxiliary valve, the auxiliary valveis at least temporarily closed, the auxiliary valve is sealedpermanently.

The auxiliary valve helps to reduce losses due to evaporation out of thegas container by temporarily closing the container body until it ispermanently sealed.

The first valve may be provided at the container body prior to itsfilling with gas. In this case the gas container is filled through theauxiliary valve and the auxiliary valve is then permanently sealed.

The first valve may also be provided at the container body after itsfilling with gas. In this case the filled container body is filledthrough the auxiliary valve, then the auxiliary valve is temporarilyclosed and then the first valve is affixed to auxiliary valve oppositeto the gas container such that a rising pressure in the gas containerdoes neither influence the affixing of the first valve nor lead to gaslosses.

Thus the first valve may be provided at the gas container without theneed of placing the gas container inside of a pressurized pressurevessel.

The auxiliary valve may be sealed by welding. The auxiliary valve may besealed by the first valve in particular when the first valve is inseries fluid connection with the auxiliary valve and the container body.

Advantageously prior to filling the container body with gas, the firstvalve is provided and is configured at the gas container.

Further details and favourable aspects, which may be applied alone ormay be combined in any suitable manner, will be explained with respectto the following drawings, which shall not restrict the scope of thepresent invention but shall schematically and exemplarily illustrate theinvention.

FIG. 1 shows the two-step process according to the invention;

FIG. 2 shows a high pressure gas container to be used according to theinvention shown in cross section;

FIG. 3 shows further high pressure gas container to be used according tothe invention shown in cross section;

FIG. 4 shows a detailed view of a supplying unit of a filling deviceaccording to the invention; and

FIG. 5 shows a supplying unit of a further embodiment of the fillingdevice according to the invention.

FIG. 1 shows schematically the two-step process for filling a highpressure gas container 1 with a first gas 2 and a second gas 3 using asupplying unit 7 for supplying the first gas 2 into the gas container 1and an introducing unit 9 for introducing the second gas 3 into the gascontainer 1. The gas container 1 comprises a container body 26 forreceiving the first gas 2 and the second gas 3 and is connected to anauxiliary valve 5. The gas container 1 is connected to a cooling bath 4which comprises a third gas 6 which is liquefied in order to precool thegas container 1 down to 86° K. The third gas 6 is liquid nitrogen whichis kept under a slight pressure in the cooling bath 4 in order toprovide for 86° K in the cooling bath 4. This precooling is performedusing a precooling unit 24 which at least partially immerses the gascontainer 1 in the cooling bath 4. The gas container 1 is thentransported with a transport mechanism 12 to a supplying unit 7 forsupplying liquid argon as first gas 2 into the gas container 1. Then theauxiliary valve 5 is closed in order to diminish evaporation losses ofthe first gas 2. Subsequently the cooling of the gas container 1 isstopped by disconnecting the gas container 1 from the cooling bath 2 bya stopping unit 8 and is transported to an introducing unit forintroducing the second gas 3 in its gaseous state. The second gas 3 suchas helium is taken from a second container 22 and is evaporated by anevaporator 25 and is introduced through the auxiliary valve 5. Aftercompletion of the introducing the auxiliary valve 5 is temporarilyclosed until the gas container 1 is permanently closed using a unit 10for closing the gas container 1. The unit 10 for closing comprises asealing device 11 which seals the gas container 1 by welding. Both theintroducing unit 9 and the unit 10 for closing may be of a conventionaltype meaning that they do not need to be adapted for cryogenicaltemperatures and do not need to be capable of coping with high pressuresabove 300 bar. The second gas 3 is introduced at ambient temperatureinto the gas container 1. After closing the gas container 1 the gascontainer 1 are allowed to warm up to ambient temperatures such that thepressure inside of the container body 26 rises to a well-definedpressure around 600 bar. The first gas 2 may be supplied at a pressureranging from 0.5 bar to 3 bar and the second gas 3 may be introduced at15 bar. The amount of gas supplied respectively introduced into the gascontainer 1 may be controlled volumetrically, gravimetrically or by anopening time of a metering valve. The second gas may be meteredaccording to the partial pressure that is eventually desired at roomtemperature. This metering may be performed outside of the cooling bath4 for instance in the sealing device 11.

FIG. 2 shows a gas container 1 in cross section to be used according tothe invention. The gas container 1 comprises the auxiliary valve 5 in afirst connection line 28 to the container body 26 and a first valve 27in a second connection line 29 to the container body 26. The first valve27 is provided at the container body 26 before the beginning of thefilling process. The first valve 27 is a membrane valve and is adaptedto be opened at the instance of operation of the gas container 1 forexample during the operation of the airbag system (not shown). The firstvalve 27 operates non-reversibly, i.e. opens only once. The first valve27 may be welded to the container body 26 respectively to the secondconnection line 29. The auxiliary valve 5 is for facilitating thesupplying of the first gas 2 respectively the introducing of the secondgas 3 into the container body 26. The auxiliary valve 5 is fortemporarily closing the container body 26 such that evaporation lossesare reduced. After the supplying step of the first gas 2 respectivelyafter the introducing step of the second gas 3, the auxiliary valve 5 isclosed. The auxiliary valve 5 may also be closed in between thesupplying and the introducing step. Once the container body 26 iscompletely filled with a gas 2, 3 or with a mixture of gases 2, 3 thefirst connection line 28 is closed using a sealing portion 31 bywelding. The closing portion 31 makes sure that after the closing of thegas container 1, gas may not escape from the container body 26 throughthe first connection line 28. The sealing portion 31 allows for usinginexpensive auxiliary valves 5 without limiting the advantages oftemporarily closing the container body 26.

FIG. 3 shows a further gas container 1 in cross section to be usedaccording to the invention, wherein the first valve 27 and the auxiliaryvalve 5 are in a fluid series connection 30. In this case the permanentclosing of the container body 26 is realized by the first valve 27 whichis closed after the filling of the container body 26 with a gas 2, 3 ora mixture of gases 2, 3. The auxiliary valve 5 is used for facilitatingthe supplying of the first gas and/or the introducing of the second gas3.

FIG. 4 shows schematically the supplying unit 7 comprising a gas supplystation 13 with a flexible filling tube 14 which is to be connected tothe container 1. For connecting the filling tube 14 with the gascontainer 1, a tube head 15 is provided which comprises a metering valve17. The tube head 15 is positioned at the gas container 1 with apositioning device 16. Due to the flexibility of the filling tube 14 agas tight connection between the gas supply station 13, respectively thesupplying unit 7, and the gas container 1 is established in a shorttime. The filling tube 14 is thermally isolated and comprises a gaschannel 18 for supplying the first gas 2 into the gas container 1. Thegas channel 18 is isolated by means of an insulation vacuum. For thispurpose the filling tube 14 is doubled walled. For further reducing aheat transfer through radiation within the insulation vacuum a heatshield 19 is introduced, which is at least partially actively cooled.The moveable tube head 15 allows for a fast connection which isimportant if a multiplicity of gas containers 1 need to be filled.

FIG. 5 shows a further embodiment of a supplying unit 7 of the devicefor filling gas containers 1. Liquid argon is stored as first gas 2 in alarge supply tank 33 and is supplied through a supply tube 32 into afirst container 21 which also serves as phase separator 20. The liquidargon from the phase separator 20 is precooled in a second precoolingunit 35 for precooling the second gas 2. The liquid argon is cooled to2° K below its boiling point in order to avoid any formation of gasbubbles within the liquid phase, which might affect the meteringprecision of the amount of gas supplied into the gas container 1. Thesecond precooling unit 35 uses liquid nitrogen as third gas 6 from athird container 23 which is connected to the second precooling unit 35with conduits 34. The precooled liquid argon is then supplied with thefilling tube 14 to the gas container 1. For this purpose the fillingtube 14 comprises a moveable tube head 15 which may be positionedprecisely at the gas container 1. The gas container 1 is transportedthrough the cooling bath by a transport mechanism 12. The cooling bath 4is closed with a cover 36 in order to establish a pressure in thecooling bath 4 with which the temperature in the cooling bath isprecisely controlled.

In the following, further aspects, which are related to the presentinvention, are described. These individual aspects may be employedindividually and separately or in any suitable combination with eachother respectively one another:

An advantageous process for filling high pressure gas containers 1comprises the steps: Supplying a liquefied or solidified first gas 2from a gas supply station 13 through a thermally insulated filling tube14 with a movable tube head 15 to the high pressure gas container 1.During the supplying step of the first gas 2, the gas container 1 may becooled, in particular by a cooling bath 4. The filling tube 14 is inparticular cooled at least partially along its length, in particular bythe cooling bath 4. The filling tube 14 may be filled using a two stepfilling process, in which after the supplying step of the first gas 2, agaseous second gas 3, in particular Helium, is introduced into the gascontainer 1, wherein in particular during the supplying step of thefirst gas 2, the gas container 1 is cooled, in particular by a coolingbath 4, and before or during the introducing step of the second gas 3the cooling of the gas container 1 is stopped, in particular the gascontainer 1 is taken out of the cooling bath 4. Advantageously highpressure gas containers 1 for air bag systems or for fuel cells arefilled. The first gas 2 and/or the second gas 3 may be a mixture ofgases.

An advantageous process of batch filling of high pressure gas containers1 with gas, comprises the step cooling multiple gas containers 1 inparallel, which are filled sequentially using the process according tothe invention.

An advantageous arrangement for filling high pressure gas containers 1with gas comprises a gas supply station 13 and multiple high pressuregas containers 1, wherein the gas supply station 13 comprises at leastone thermally insulated filling tube 14 with a movable tube head 15 forgas filling of the gas containers 1, wherein the arrangement maycomprise a positioning device 16 for moving the tube head 15 to theindividual gas containers 1. Advantageously, a metering valve 17 forcontrolling a gas flow through the filling tube 14 may be provided inthe tube head 15. The gas supply station 13 may comprise a cooling bath4 for cooling the gas containers 1, wherein the filling tube 14 may beat least partially immersed in the cooling bath 4 and wherein thearrangement may further comprise a transport mechanism 12 fortransporting the gas containers 1 through the cooling bath 4. In auseful embodiment, the filling tube 14 may be at least doubled walledand may comprise an insulation vacuum for thermal insulation. Thefilling tube 14 may be actively cooled by a cooling medium, inparticular a liquefied third gas 6 and/or may comprise a gas channel 18and a tubular heat shield 19 at least partially around the gas channel18, wherein the heat shield 19 is cooled by the cooling medium. Tubehead 15 may comprise an auxiliary valve 5 for temporarily closing thegas container 1. The gas filling tube 14 is in particular for filling aliquefied first gas 2 into the gas containers 1. The gas supply station13 may comprise a first container 21 for a liquefied first gas 2. Thegas supply station 13 may advantageously comprise an introducing unit 9for introducing a gaseous second gas 3 into the gas container 1. The gassupply station 13 may comprise a second container 22 for a liquefiedsecond gas 3, wherein the gas supply station 13 may comprise anevaporator 25 for converting the liquefied second gas 3 into its gaseousstate. The gas supply station 13 may comprise a third container 23 for aliquefied third gas 6 as cooling medium.

An advantageous gas supply station 13 for filling high pressure gascontainers 1 with gas is adapted and in particular destined for use inthe arrangement according to the invention.

An advantageous process for filling a high pressure gas container 1,comprises the following steps: Supplying a liquefied or solidified firstgas 2 into a gas container 1 while the gas container 1 is being cooled;stopping the cooling of the gas container 1 after the supplying step ofthe first gas; then introducing a gaseous second gas 3 into the gascontainer 1; closing the gas container 1, wherein in particular thecooling of the gas container 1 may be performed in a cooling bath 4, inparticular a cooling bath 4 of liquid nitrogen, and the cooling isstopped by disconnecting the gas container 1 from the cooling bath 4.The first gas 2 and/or the second gas 3 may be a mixture of pluralgases. The first gas 2 and/or the second gas 3 may be an inert gas, inparticular a noble gas. After the supplying step of the first gas 2 andbefore the introducing step of the second gas 3 the gas container 1 maybe temporarily closed. The gas container 1 is in particular temporarilyclosed using an auxiliary valve 5. The closing of the gas container 1may be performed by welding. The gas containers 1 are in particular forair bag systems or for fuel cells. The supplying of the first gas 2 maybe performed at a pressure in the range from 0.2 bar to 15 bar, inparticular in the range from 0.5 bar to 4 bar. The supplying of thesecond gas 3 may be performed at a pressure in the range from 2 bar to100 bar, in particular, in the range from 5 bar to 50 bar, for examplein the range from 10 bar to 20 bar. The first gas 2 may be supplied in aliquid state into the gas container 1 and solidifies in the gascontainer 1. The first gas 2 may be supplied at a temperature lower thanits boiling temperature, in particular at least 1° K, preferably atleast 2° K, lower than its boiling temperature, and at a temperaturehigher than its freezing temperature, in particular at least 1° K,preferably at least 2° K, higher than its freezing temperature. Afterthe supplying step of the first gas 2 and before the introducing step ofthe second gas 3, the gas container 1 may be connected to a sealingdevice 11, in particular a welding apparatus 12, and after theintroducing step of the second gas 3 the gas container 1 may be sealedby the sealing device 11, in particular by welding. The cooling is inparticular performed using a liquefied third gas 6, in particular liquidnitrogen, wherein in particular the temperature of the third gas 6 maybe controlled by controlling the pressure in the third gas 6. The gascontainer 1 may be cooled before the supplying step of the first gas 2.

An advantageous device for filling high pressure gas containers 1,comprises: A supplying unit 7 for supplying a liquefied or solidifiedfirst gas 2 into a gas container 1 while the gas container 1 is beingcooled; a stopping unit 8 for stopping the cooling of the gas container1; an introducing unit 9 for introducing a gaseous second gas 3 into thegas container 1 after the supplying step of the first gas; a unit 10 forclosing the gas container 1, wherein in particular the device furthercomprises a cooling bath 4 for cooling the gas container 1, wherein inparticular the device further comprises a transport mechanism 12 fortransporting the gas containers 1 through the cooling bath 4. The unit10 for closing the gas container 1 may be a welding apparatus 12. Thedevice is in particular for filling high pressure gas containers 1 forair bag systems or for fuel cells. The device in particular furthercomprises a gas supply station 13 and at least one thermally insulatedfilling tube 14 with a tube head 15 that is in fluid connection with thegas supply station 13, wherein the filling tube 14 is for supplying thefirst gas 2 to the gas containers 1, wherein the device in particularfurther comprises a positioning device 16 for positioning the tube head15 at the gas containers 1.

The invention concerns a high pressure gas container 1 with a containerbody 26 for storing gas and at least one first valve 27 for dischargingthe stored gas, characterized by further comprising an auxiliary valve 5for introducing the gas into the container body 26 and for temporarilyclosing the container body 26 until the container body 26 is sealedpermanently, wherein the first valve 27 and the auxiliary valve 5 are influid connection with the container body 26. The invention also concernsa process for filling a high pressure gas container 1 having a containerbody 26 for storing gas, at least one first valve 27 for discharging thestored gas and an auxiliary valve 5 wherein the first valve 27 and theauxiliary valve 5 are in fluid connection with the container body 26,comprising the following steps: The gas is introduced into the containerbody 26 through the auxiliary valve 5, the auxiliary valve 5 is at leasttemporarily closed, the auxiliary valve 5 is sealed permanently. Theinvention allows for reliable, economical, reproducible and precisefilling of high pressure gas containers using a conventional sealingapparatus without the need of its adaptation to either high pressure orlow temperature appliance.

REFERENCE NUMERALS

-   1 gas container-   2 first gas-   3 second gas-   4 cooling bath-   5 auxiliary valve-   6 third gas-   7 supplying unit-   8 stopping unit-   9 introducing unit-   10 unit for closing-   11 sealing device-   12 transport mechanism-   13 gas supply station-   14 filling tube-   15 tube head-   16 positioning device-   17 metering valve-   18 gas channel-   19 heat shield-   20 phase separator-   21 first container-   22 second container-   23 third container-   24 precooling unit-   25 evaporator-   26 container body-   27 first valve-   28 first connection line-   29 second connection line-   30 fluid series connection-   31 sealing portion-   32 supply tube-   33 supply tank-   34 conduits-   35 second precooling unit-   36 cover

1. High pressure gas container (1) with a container body (26) forstoring gas and at least one first valve (27) for discharging the storedgas, characterized by further comprising an auxiliary valve (5) forintroducing the gas into the container body (26) and for temporarilyclosing the container body (26) until the container body (26) is sealedpermanently, wherein the first valve (27) and the auxiliary valve (5)are in fluid connection with the container body (26).
 2. Gas container(1) according to claim 1, characterized in that the first valve (27) andthe auxiliary valve (5) are connected to the container body (26) withseparate fluid connection lines (28, 29).
 3. Gas container (1) accordingto claim 1, characterized in that the first valve (27) and the auxiliaryvalve (5) are connected to the container body (26) in a fluid seriesconnection (30).
 4. Gas container (1) according to claim 1,characterized in that the first valve (27) is non-reversibly openable.5. Gas container (1) according to claim 1, characterized in that theauxiliary valve (5) is reversibly openable and closable.
 6. Gascontainer (1) according to claim 1, characterized in that a sealingportion (31) is provided at the auxiliary valve (5) for permanentlyclosing the auxiliary valve (5).
 7. Gas container (1) according to claim6, characterized in that the sealing portion (31) is provided in thefluid connection between the auxiliary valve (5) and the container body(26).
 8. Gas container (1) according to claim 6, characterized in thatthe auxiliary valve (5) is provided in the fluid interconnection betweenthe sealing portion (31) and the container body (26).
 9. Gas container(1) according to claim 1, characterized in that the auxiliary valve (5)is one of the following valves: a ball cock, a ball valve, a bibcock, abutterfly valve, a gate valve, a globe valve, check valve, a rotaryvalve, a piston valve.
 10. Gas container (1) according to claim 1,characterized in that the first valve (27) is a membrane valve.
 11. Gascontainer (1) according to claim 1, characterized in that the highpressure gas container (1) is for an air bag system.
 12. Gas container(1) according to claim 1, characterized in that the high pressure gascontainer (1) is for a fuel cell.
 13. Process for filling a highpressure gas container (1) having a container body (26) for storing gas,at least one first valve (27) for discharging the stored gas and anauxiliary valve (5), wherein the first valve (27) and the auxiliaryvalve (5) are in fluid connection with the container body (26),comprising the following steps: the gas is introduced into the containerbody (26) through the auxiliary valve (5), the auxiliary valve (5) is atleast temporarily closed, the auxiliary valve (5) is sealed permanently.14. Process according to claim 13, characterized in that the auxiliaryvalve (5) is sealed by welding.
 15. Process according to claim 13,characterized in that the auxiliary valve (5) is sealed by the firstvalve (27).
 16. Process according to claim 13, characterized in thatprior to filling the container body (26) with gas, the first valve (27)is provided and is configured at the gas container (1).
 17. Processaccording to claim 14, characterized in that the auxiliary valve (5) issealed by the first valve (27).